StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG)

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Argus cut shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. BNP Paribas upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

NYSE IPG opened at $26.28 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $9.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.36 and a beta of 1.14. Interpublic Group of Companies has a fifty-two week low of $25.85 and a fifty-two week high of $33.05. The business has a fifty day moving average of $27.49 and a 200-day moving average of $29.00.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.04). Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. As a group, analysts predict that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to purchase up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.02%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $574,672.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,845,263.86. This trade represents a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Interpublic Group of Companies

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of IPG. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,844,859 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $943,993,000 after acquiring an additional 3,920,975 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 139.5% during the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 13,210,446 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $370,157,000 after purchasing an additional 7,693,636 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 13.0% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 12,975,872 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $363,584,000 after purchasing an additional 1,492,019 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,938,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $362,538,000 after purchasing an additional 511,607 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,264,732 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $287,618,000 after buying an additional 1,320,345 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Company Profile

The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc provides advertising and marketing services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Media, Data & Engagement Solutions, Integrated Advertising & Creativity Led Solutions, and Specialized Communications & Experiential Solutions. The Media, Data & Engagement Solutions segment provides media and communications services, digital services and products, advertising and marketing technology, e-commerce services, data management and analytics, strategic consulting, and digital brand experience under the IPG Mediabrands, UM, Initiative, Kinesso, Acxiom, Huge, MRM, and R/GA brand names.